


coconut shampoo

by amclove



Category: I Told Sunset About You (2020), I Told Sunset About You - Fandom, I Told Sunset About You | แปลรักฉันด้วยใจเธอ
Genre: (speculation), M/M, based on the trailer, possible ep3 events
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:14:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27309739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amclove/pseuds/amclove
Summary: Speculation based on the trailer, set possibly in episode three at Oh-Aew's resort.
Relationships: Teh/Oh-aew
Comments: 10
Kudos: 72





	coconut shampoo

It’s near one in the morning, the gang having dispersed a good while ago for their respective rooms, but Teh’s patience in waiting for sleep had worn out. After an hour of rolling this way and that to the left of Phillip’s annoyingly tranquil snores, Teh had padded from the room and right out the building to sit by the water, hopeful that maybe the calm of the night would lull him into tiredness. And he is tired, really, but it’s the kind of tired that won’t let him rest. Like, he couldn’t keep his eyes closed for more than a couple moments before he felt uneasy.

He doesn’t know why that could be, seeing as he and Oh-Aew shared plenty an overnight occasion here in their childhood. For a while, this resort was as familiar to Teh as his family’s restaurant, Oh-Aew’s parents as much Teh’s as they were his. But what once was isn’t quite so anymore, and the day had been riddled through with moments of discomfort that Teh couldn’t put a name to. If he’s being honest, it’s the same feeling he had that afternoon on the beach with Tarn at opening his messages to a photo of Bas’ knee resting against Oh-Aew’s. And it surely can’t be a coincidence that many such moments today were felt when Bas and Oh-Aew were particularly chummy.

Teh knows that that isn’t fair. In the part of his brain that excels in school, he is completely aware that he and Oh-Aew have been apart for years, a vast lot of reason for that being Teh himself. If Oh-Aew has more of a connection to Bas, whose fault is that? And further, if Oh-Aew developed a crush, all he needs from Teh is support. Not nonsensical jealousy. Jealousy of… of… the idea that someone else can make Oh-Aew happy, someone who isn’t Teh? Which is entirely ridiculous, considering Teh’s years-long absence basically forced Oh-Aew to keep other company. How can he blame him when Bas is, as Oh-Aew described, kind, generous, constantly thinking of Oh-Aew’s well-being… all the things that Teh had failed at in their initial parting. That’s why he really does want to be better, for Oh-Aew. He wants to show him that he can be that person too. But it seems the more he tries, the more he looks like a jealous fool. Is he doing it to be better, genuinely, or to one-up Bas? And for what?

He sort of knows for what, truthfully, and in the strangest way it hadn’t hit him hard at all. As kids, Oh-Aew had always liked coconut. Anything with the flavouring, the scent, even the design, Oh-Aew took such enjoyment in and Teh just let his friend have his preference. It was only when he smelled Oh-Aew’s pen while studying that he realised his dislike for coconut had manifested around the time their friendship had disintegrated, whereas before it had never been an issue. He associated the smell with Oh-Aew, and it made him uncomfortable to the degree of repulsion. But in that moment on the boat, his senses focused on Oh-Aew and the sweet mix of coconut and gel of his hair, Teh felt that shift back to what it once was.

Even more, it registered in his chest that he would no longer be tolerating the scent like he had as a kid, but rather wanting to seek it out. Because of Oh-Aew, and who they are together in this second. That came to him when he was already in bed that same night, eyes fixed on his ceiling, while what felt like across the world he knew Oh-Aew was likely sound asleep. But there he was, thoughts stuck on coconut shampoo and why he felt so off.

So he’s come to a conclusion that he hadn’t expected, but even then he doesn’t have any real answers. He still feels something for Tarn, even if there’s a restless bird encaged behind his ribs that chirps for Oh-Aew, and what’s there to be done? It isn’t as though it matters; Oh-Aew is sharing a room with Bas tonight and if he’s lucky, something might happen between them that will push their friendship into more. And Teh will provide the support Oh-Aew needs from his closest friend. That’s what he is to him, his closest friend. It’s what Teh wanted. It only sucks that just as he’s realising _why_ that what he wanted so desperately is to be Oh-Aew’s favourite, it’s already for naught.

“Trying to swim home?”

Teh looks up to see Bas, green tee hanging over his shorts. “Even I wouldn’t make that,” he manages to joke. Why on earth is he here instead of in bed with Oh-Aew? Isn’t the entire point of this basically for them to… Well, everyone knows that Oh-Aew’s never — Teh clears his throat just to do something.

“You?” Bas says, the teasing evident as he takes a seat. “The resident jack of all trades?”

“I’m not that good,” Teh replies. He shifts in his place on the wooden planks. Looking out at the dark water, Bas only gives a slow nod. “What’re you… I’m not trying to be a jerk, but what’re you doing out here?”

Bas glances at him and if Teh didn’t know better, he’d say his cheeks were turning red. “I needed air. Why’re you here?”

“Couldn’t sleep. Is Oh-Aew—?”

“No, he’s…” Bas cringes slightly, which Teh doesn’t understand. “You’re… his best friend, yeah?”

“I like to think so.”

“You know he’s never had a girlfriend.”

Teh shifts again. “Uh, yeah.”

“I haven’t seen anyone for over a year and I—” Bas pauses to think. “We’re in the same group, and I think he got the wrong… impression. I think he—Well, I—”

“You aren’t into him,” Teh concludes, eyes widening.

Bas looks down at his lap, fingers twiddling uselessly. “I really was just trying to be nice; I wasn’t doing it on purpose, I swear.”

“Why do you think he likes you?”

“Just now, before I came down, he… I was dozing and he leaned in; I think he was just trying to get a little closer to me, but when he saw I wasn’t asleep he panicked and—and just freaked out. Totally clammed up. I told him I’d give him space and… here I am. Hey, what’re you—”

Already on his feet, Teh barely spares Bas a response over his shoulder. “Going to see Oh-Aew,” he says. “I’ll message you if—whatever.” Taken aback by Teh’s abruptness, Bas just nods and watches him hurry up the path for the building.

Two quick knocks at the door have Oh-Aew looking up from his place at the window. He’s on the floor, head on his knees, when it comes. He wipes hastily at his eyes, which are likely disgustingly red, and jumps to his feet.

“Oh?” he hears. His erratic heartbeat slows almost immediately into something calm at the sound of his friend’s voice. He goes to the door and opens it himself to reveal Teh stood there, his wide eyes brimming with concern. “Are you—” Oh-Aew shakes his head, pulling Teh into the room before he can say anything more. “—okay?” he finishes confusedly.

“I’m such an idiot.”

“Well, hold on.”

“No, I am. People can be friends. People can be _friends_ but I totally projected onto him, Teh; I made him uncomfortable and he probably hates me.”

Teh’s glad he has context because Oh-Aew is speaking so quickly that he may not even have been able to catch up otherwise. “He doesn’t hate you,” Teh promises him. “Why do you think I’m here?”

Seeming to actually register this, Oh-Aew hesitates. “Wait. Why _are_ you here?”

“Bas came down to the water and we ran into each other. Mentioned something about confused signals.”

Oh-Aew shakes his head. “I messed up so bad.”

“You didn’t.”

“I _did_.” He turns back for the window and hangs his head outside, taking in air. “I did.”

Teh joins him beside the windowsill. “It happens. But he doesn’t hate you and this doesn’t have to change anything if you don’t want it to. Like, come on; it isn’t like you—grabbed him in his sleep.” Teh is laughing a little, but Oh-Aew’s face is red and that gives Teh pause. “You… you didn’t—”

“Of course I didn’t. But I… did he… tell you what happened?”

“He just said he opened his eyes to see you close to his face. So?” Oh-Aew mutters something that has Teh asking, “Say again?”

“I was going to kiss him,” Oh-Aew blurts. “Just barely! It wasn’t going to be a lot; I just wanted to see what it felt like and I thought he was asleep—”

“Oh-Aew…”

“I know, okay? I know. Why do you think I’m so upset? I just kept thinking about how you kissed Tarn and how you and her are a step closer to territory I’ve never been where at least before we were—we were both on the same page. You know?” Oh-Aew stops to take a breath, swallowing hard to keep himself from rambling off. “Never been kissed, never done anything. I was too chicken to even touch his arm, Teh, _forever_. But you just went for it with _your_ crush. I didn’t… want to be left behind.”

Teh’s throat is tight but he talks around that. “It isn’t a race, you know it isn’t—”

“Not when you’re in the lead! But I’m in _last_. In everything, to everyone, I’m in last.” Oh-Aew wipes his tears from his cheeks and sits on the floor, forearms up around his head like a helmet.

Teh slowly drops to sit next to him. He lets a few moments of quiet pass. “Oh-Aew,” he murmurs.

“Teh, don’t.”

“You don’t know what I’m going to say.”

“Yeah, I do. You’re going to comfort me and tell me that I’m stressing over nothing.”

“Well, yeah, because it’s true. But _also_ … I lied.” Intrigued in the slightest, Oh-Aew lifts his head just enough to side-eye Teh. “Yeah, I… I didn’t kiss Tarn.”

“What?” Oh-Aew demands loudly, making Teh laugh as he gestures for him to shush.

“We did kiss, but _she_ kissed _me_ , okay?” He leans his head back against the wall.

“Why?” Oh-Aew asks, eyes shining with interest (and forgotten tears). “What made her?”

“I had leaned in but I… I didn’t go through with it,” Teh admits. “Don’t know why.”

Oh-Aew stares at him in disbelief. “You had the chance to kiss the girl you like and you backed out? Lame.”

“Am not!” Teh rejoins with a slap to Oh-Aew’s head, who just grins at the weak hit.

Teh can’t confess what he’s been thinking, which is that when he’d been so close to Tarn’s lips and taken in the scent of her floral lotion, thoughts of coconut and gel had pervaded his senses. He hadn’t even processed it until the night after in bed, to be fair, but it still aches.

“I just… didn’t want to cross a line,” he says quietly.

“Like me,” Oh-Aew says in slightly bitter understanding.

Despite knowing what Oh-Aew means, Teh could almost laugh. Is Oh-Aew himself the line, or is he just on the other side? What separates them? Why does that line seem so insurmountable?

“You made a mistake,” Teh says after a second. “Shit happens.”

“You know, sometimes I think you have the perfect life,” Oh-Aew admits. Teh looks at him in wait for the punchline. “What? I actually do.”

“Oh, come on.”

“I mean it! You’re lucky. Your brother’s so nice, has the coolest job; he gets to travel all over and meet all these people. You own a restaurant that serves the best hokkien mee in Thailand’s history.” Teh snorts at that but Oh-Aew presses on, “And you’re… going to Bangkok for uni to become an actor.” He briefly bites his lip into his mouth. “Your family believes in your dreams and does everything to support you; even Tuty would bite my head off to protect you.”

“Hey.” Teh smiles a little, nudging their arms together. “I can buy you a dog.”

“Teh,” Oh-Aew laughs. He hangs his head to hide it, but Teh can tell.

“I have it pretty good,” Teh agrees, becoming a tad more serious. “But that doesn’t mean you don’t. This place is amazing and it’s no wonder your parents want you to consider taking it over. But you know the same as me that if you can make it off the waitlist or even into an entirely different school for Comm Arts, they’d be behind you 100 percent.”

They sit quietly. Oh-Aew bumps his head against Teh’s shoulder.

“Thanks.”

“Pfft. For what?”

“Hey, you know I was seriously considering changing my shampoo?”

Teh looks at him. “Huh? Why?”

“Cuz you seemed to hate it so much!” Oh-Aew says, like it’s obvious. “It’s fun to torture you and all but only for so long. I’m glad you’re used to it, now I’m off the hook. You really didn’t like it, though! I’m surprised you came around.” Teh can feel that bird in his chest as Oh-Aew jokes, “Handsome guy like me, I make everything good, don’t I?”

“Mm.”

“And what about that kiss?” Teh looks at him again, taken aback. “You and Tarn?” Oh-Aew clarifies with childlike excitement, his voice taking on a slight whine as he presses, “How was it? Stop holding out on me, Teh.”

With the smell of the water rushing in from the window above, all Teh has to do is close his eyes and he’s back on the boat with Oh-Aew being asked this question nights ago. He can still feel Oh-Aew’s knee bumping his, and how his reaction had been to push it away and turn it into a wrestling game. He couldn’t do what he’d wanted then, and he likely shouldn’t do it now.

He lets his knee fall against Oh-Aew’s to his right, which is when Teh remembers that he hadn’t separated their arms when he’d nudged him. They just hadn’t moved. Bas could come back any second, is the thing. This is supposed to be his room for the night and should he want to sleep in it, he could just walk right in to… whatever this is. _What_ is this? Oh-Aew just continues to look at Teh, his expression softening in the same way it had on the boat. Expectant but unworried. He probably doesn’t even realise he’s doing it.

Head against the wall, Oh-Aew doesn’t do a thing as Teh leans closer to his face. There’s the coconut. No gel, Oh-Aew’s hair washed for the night, but that just means the shampoo alone is stronger than usual and it’s all Teh can focus on. That and the way Oh-Aew’s gaze is following his movement. He really isn’t going to move away.

Teh’s hand goes to rest on Oh-Aew’s knee, if only to put it somewhere, and then he’s put their lips together even though it’s entirely possible that this could be very, very bad. It’s Oh-Aew though, so it is also entirely possible that it will be more than worth it. He isn’t sure when that became true for him, but it is. If it’s Oh-Aew, it’s likely to be completely worth it, no matter what it is.

Oh-Aew lifts his hand to the side of Teh’s head and he’s shaking just enough for it to be noticeable. “I wanted to be on the same page again,” Teh manages to say, causing Oh-Aew to laugh and the shaking of his hand to stop. “Even score.”

“I don’t think we have to keep score.”

“ _Now_ you say that—”

Oh-Aew presses his mouth again to Teh’s, biting a little, and Teh jumps. Oh-Aew lets him go immediately, panicked, and asks, “What? Did I—”

“No, I — Who the hell taught you _that_?”

“It isn’t a big deal,” Oh-Aew says, flushing. “Mod’s been dating Karakade for like, ever; he knows everything and makes us listen.”

“Warn a guy,” Teh says with a shake of his head and definitely red-faced.

“Teh,” Oh-Aew complains, whacking him. “What… what does this mean?”

Teh looks at him after a second, then just leans in to give another kiss to his lips. Oh-Aew smiles against it, a second complaint ready to go at Teh’s change of subject, but it is rather difficult to focus on conversation when he’s being kissed.

Teh does put a bit of space between them in only a second, however, as he says, “I don’t know. I… walked in here to you crying about Bas. You _like_ Bas.”

“And you like Tarn.”

“I do,” Teh confirms, then with less certainty, “I thought I did.” He takes a breath to gather his scattered brain. “I think I really did, but I…” He can’t help looking at Oh-Aew, whose lips quirk up despite the situation when their eyes meet. “Is it awful if I say I…”

“I know I can’t exactly be objective here, but it happens. You know? And I… Well, Bas doesn’t like me. What’s stopping me from wanting you?” Oh-Aew asks, poking Teh’s head with a half smile.

“He didn’t look happy about it,” Teh says. “I think he knows what he’s missing.”

“He’s straight,” Oh-Aew says dryly. “I really don’t think that’s true.”

“In the abstract,” Teh says, rolling his eyes. “He knows you’re the best he could have. Just isn’t meant to be in _that_ way.”

Oh-Aew nods a little, settling his head against Teh’s shoulder. Teh turns his nose so he can smell the coconut shampoo.

“Are you going to be weirdly obsessed with my hair now?” Oh-Aew asks. “Should I be worried?”

“Very much so on both.”

Oh-Aew laughs, shaking Teh along with him. He lifts his head so he can look at Teh’s face. Teh waggles his eyebrows and then quickly pecks both spots beneath Oh-Aew’s eyes before he can look away. Oh-Aew can’t help laughing again as he drops back against Teh.

“Have you always been such a weirdo?”

“I made you play-fight with me using swords made of grass-bundles,” Teh replies. “You know the answer.”

“Right.”

“You love it.”

Oh-Aew lets out a snort. “To my own demise,” he jokes. He pushes up off the floor and offers a hand to Teh, which he accepts. “Let’s go to bed.” At Teh’s lascivious look, Oh-Aew shoves his shoulder. “Not on your life.”

Teh laughs heartily. “Just joking! I’ll message Bas to sleep with Phillip; I’ll just stay here.” Oh-Aew doesn’t look convinced, but Teh gives him a look. “You’d rather Bas come here so you can’t sleep all night?”

Oh-Aew sighs. “Yeah, whatever. Tell him. I’m going to bed for real this time.”

“Three hours later.”

“Better late than never.”

To his favour, Bas asks if Oh-Aew is okay seconds after he receives Teh’s message. Teh’s eyes find Oh-Aew where he’s curled on his side, the blanket pulled up to his chin, and he feels the rock in his throat dislodge. He assures Bas that they’re all fine and not to worry.

He gets under the covers beside Oh-Aew and is pleasantly surprised when Oh-Aew turns right over after a second to clutch onto his arm. He doesn’t even open his eyes as he asks sleepily, “Is this okay?”

Another constriction behind his ribcage and Teh nods. Realising Oh-Aew can’t see it, he voices, “Yeah. ’Night.”

“You’re my best friend,” Oh-Aew adds, just when he’s seemed to have drifted off and catching Teh off guard. He can still see the look on Oh-Aew’s face that day at the beach when he’d said they probably wouldn’t ever be as close as they’d been years ago. But here they are.

“You’re mine too.”

Oh-Aew settles a little more snuggly against Teh’s arm, so near that Teh can count his eyelashes. Here they are. Oh-Aew had been right. Teh is lucky. As messy as everything is, if he can just hang on to Oh-Aew… Well, he just has to hope that his luck won’t run out.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you 🙏


End file.
